NOT FRAGILE

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Гитарист Рэнди Бахман играл в известной канадской группе "Guess who", для которой написал кучу хитов. Потом он ушёл из группы и в 1970 году записал сольник "Axe". Продолжать одному работу не хотелось, и он решил создать новую команду. Скооперировавшись со своим бывшим коллегой из "Guess who" Чэдом Алленом (вокал, клавишные, гитара) и посадив за ударные своего младшего братишку Робина он назвал проект "Brave Belt". Ко времени выхода второго альбома в группе появился еще один участник, автор песен и вокалист С.Ф. Тернер. Именно с его приходом саунд коллектива достиг нужной тяжести. Недовольный новым направлением Чэд Аллен покинул группу, а за бас-гитару взялся еще один братец Бахман – Тим.

Итак, сменив направление, произведя замену в составе, команда поменяла заодно лейбл, а также название – на "Bachman-Turner overdrive". Дебютный альбом, представлявший собой по словам Рэнди нечто среднее между "Creedence" и "Rolling stones" имел невероятный успех, застряв в чартах на целых 68 недель. Зато следующий диск намного поднялся в хит-парадах, заняв уже 12-ю строчку вместо 70-й. Ко времени выхода третьей пластинки, "Not Fragile", Тим Бахман был заменен Блэром Торнтоном, однако это никак не отразилось на стиле группы, и не помешало альбому занять теперь уже высшую позицию в чартах. Самой хитовой композицией с этого диска стала "You ain't seen nothing yet", хотя все остальные вещи были достаточно мощными. На волне успеха все три первых пластинки "Bachman-Turner overdrive" получили золотой статус. Четвертый альбом, "Four Wheel Drive", лишь закрепил за группой стату культовой команды. Этот диск достиг платинового статуса уже в первую неделю продаж. Следующий альбом "Head On" так-же получил платину. На следующий год вышл сборник "Best of BTO".

К тому времени в команде наметился раскол. Дело в том, что Рэнди хотел рулить самолично. Так, на пластинке "Freeways", вышедшей в 1977 году практически все композиции были написаны им. Тернеровская вещь была всего одна, а Роб и Блэр оказались вообще как бы ни при чем. Вокал Фреда присутствовал лишь на его "Life Still Goes On (I'm Lonely)" и на заглавном треке, все остальные песни исполнял Рэнди. Тернеру, который почуствовал себя сессионным музыкантом, все это дело не понравилось и он даже отказался от того, чтобы его фото было помещено на обложке. В результате всех этих неурядиц Рэнди, выпустив с коллегами концертник "BTO Japan Tour – Live", в 1977 году свалил из группы и занялся подготовкой сольной пластинки.

Оставшиеся музыканты решили продолжить деятельность и пригласили к себе Джима Кленча из "April Wine". Этот товарищ играл на басу, поэтому Тернер переключился на гитару, а вокальные партии они поделили пополам. Название "Bachman Turner Overdrive" было сокращено до аббревиатуры "BTO". Пластинка нового состава, "Street Action", получилась очень неплохой.. Следующая работа "Rock'n'Roll Nights", для участия в которой впервые были привлечены композиторы со стороны (Брайан Адамс, Ди Саймондс и Джим Валланс). А в 1979 году было принято решение о роспуске группы. В 1983-м бывшие коллеги задумались о восстановлении "Bachman-Turner overdrive". Реанимированная команда включала в себя Рэнди, Фреда, Тима и Гэри Петерсона. Попытки возрождения "Bachman-Turner overdrive" предпринимались еще несколько раз, и последнюю конфигурацию,существующую и сейчас, составили Робин Бахман, Тернер, Торнтон и Рэнди Мюррей.

Contrary to popular belief, the fire of BTO did not rise from the ashes of The Guess Who, at least not directly. After taking a hiatus from Canada's greatest supergroup of the time, Randy Bachman released his first solo venture, 1970's AXE.

Despite it's less than enthusiastic response, he still officially announced his departure from The Guess Who and by the beginning of 1971 had formed Brave Belt with younger brother Robbie on drums, former bandmate with The Expressions Chad Allen and longtime friend C F (Fred) Turner on bass. The band was signed by Reprise Records in April and released their self-titled debut a month later. Despite spawning two singles "Crazy Arms, Crazy Eyes" and "Rock & Roll Band", the record didn't exactly set the world on fire. BRAVE BELT II was released in the winter that same year. Again two singles came from it, "Never Comin' Home" and "Dunrobin's Gone". Even though this effort was also met with mixed response, the sound Brave Belt incorporated would become integral ingredients in the formation of Bachman Turner Overdrive.

Problems with management about the direction Brave Belt was going had begun to surface by mid 1972 and the tour in support of the second album was cancelled half-way through. Bachman and company nonetheless continued to play Canada coast to coast independantly. The band by this time had also already replaced Allen with Randy and Robbie's brother Tim, who'd dropped out of college to join the group.

After sending a demo tape to Mercury Records, the newly renamed band was signed by Charley Fach and released BACHMAN TURNER OVERDRIVE on May 1, 1973. The hard-driving sound of "Give Me Your Money Please" mixed with the blues overtones of tracks like "Blue Collar" made it a hit. "BTO II" was released later that year. "Let It Ride" was the first single and gave a hint of things to come and the monster "Takin' Care of Business" followed. The song actually stemmed from an old song Randy tried to record with The Guess Who as "White Collar Worker". Other hits included "Welcome Home" and the lead-off track "Blown". Tim left the group following the subsequent tour to be replaced by Blair Thornton.

August '74 saw what would turn out to be the band's biggest seller in NOT FRAGILE, backed by more monster hits in "You Ain't Seen Nothing Yet" and "Roll On Down The Highway". The band's versatility was demonstrated once again with the Randy-penned and sung tune "Rock Is My Life And This Is My Song". The next year produced FOUR WHEEL DRIVE. The title track written by Thornton, "Hey You" and "Quick Change Artist" were released as singles and along with other tracks like "Don't Let The Blues Get You Down" and rowdy "She's A Devil" helped solidify BTO's place as one of Canada's biggest groups. The reception given the band by the American audiences further helped silence Randy's critics as to his ability to produce hits outside The Guess Who.

The group cut HEAD ON later that year which featured the hits "Looking Out For #1" and "Gimme Your Money Please". Repeated airplay and constant touring had by this time made BTO synonomous with quality, no-frills rock & roll in practically all corners of the globe. The band released JAPAN TOUR LIVE in 1977. Although criticized as simply being one of many live records to be cut that year in front of a rock-starved Japanese crowd, was a fine indication of the brand of entertainment the group delivered live, and in fact was one of the first live albums taped in Japan. The compilation BEST OF BTO ... SO FAR followed that same year.

Next up was FREEWAYS, released by the end of '77. "Shotgun Rider" and "Life Goes On" were released as singles, but it seemed as though something was missing. However problems with the direction the music was going again plagued the group and led to Randy Bachman leaving the band. Legal issues ensued which continue to this day, leading to Thornton, Turner and Robin Bachman securing the rights to the name 'BTO' and using that name instead of the elongated band name. With Jim Clench of April Wine fame coming in on bass, Turner switched to rhythm guitar. 1978 had STREET ACTION hit the stores and the single "Down The Road" on the airwaves, but poor direction from the record label meant no one listened or bought it. They released ROCK AND ROLL NIGHTS on Mercury Records the next year. Although two singles were released, the reception given "Heartaches" and Jim Vallance's "Jamaica" spelled the temporary shelving of one of Canada's finest names in rock.

The band reformed with Randy for '84's self-titled release. Along with Turner, the album also featured Billy Chapman on piano and Randy's Guess Who buddy Gary Peterson on drums. Randy also recruited wife Denise McCann for backing vocals. Though it was met with critical reviews, the album failed to produce any singles or much of a renewed interest in the band, despite the tight writing and skilled musicianship the name BTO was synonymous with in such tracks as "Toledo", "City's Still Growin'" and the lead track "For The Weekend". Randy Bachman left again shortly after the album's release and Turner disbanded the group, with all members taking some time for other projects.

The label execs released GREATEST HITS LIVE two years later and BTO'S GREATEST in the spring of '87. They regrouped with their present lineup in 1991. Robin Bachman, Turner, Thornton and new guitarist Randy Murray hit the tour circuit as if the band never missed a beat. "Randy doesn't fill anyone's shoes," Bachman said. "He brings his own." What many consider thel-r Murray, Thornton, Turner, Bachman essential BTO collection, a double disc set called ANTHOLOGY came out in 1993. DRIVE ON, another best-of compilation was next up a year later.

BTO again hit the stores in 1998 with TRIAL BY FIRE, available only in Europe. Consisting of Turner, original drummer Robbie Bachman, Thornton's return on guitars and Randy Murray holding down the rest of the guitar duties, the disc interestingly consisted mostly of classic BTO brought up to date with Murray on vocals, including "You Ain't Seen Nothin' Yet" and "Hey You". But also noteable are the four new songs, including the title-track. Also on the record is a killer version of the Delta blues classic The Animals made famous "House of the Rising Sun". The origins of the recording began a couple years earlier at an outdoor show in Sturgess, SD for the Hell's Angels, which the Animals also played. When they didn't play "House" BTO was told they'd better, so they did.

A mid 70's concert was released in 1998 in the King Biscuit Flower Hour series, two years prior to another 'best of' compilation, this one in CBS' Millenium series. Though it's the line-up featuring Randy Bachman that most people equate to as 'BTO', the band's current line-up is actually their longest standing. 3 1/2 decades on the scene have cemented them in the foundations of Canadian rock and a new album is in the works.

COLD LAKE - It’s safe to say the foundations of Canadian rock were cemented in place to the beat of at least one BTO song. Since their original inception as Brave Belt in 1971, they’ve consistently gained a reputation as one of the hardest working and most loved bands on the planet.

They released their self-titled debut album as BTO in 1972 and the hard-driving rhythms of "Gimme Your Money Please" and what the band termed 'heavy metal Prairies-style' in "Don’t Get Yourself In Trouble" were fused with the blues-twinged "Blue Collar" made the album an instant hit. Bassist Fred Turner’s vocals would soon become as unique and distinguishable as anyone else’s in the rock realm.

Any doubts this was going to be the next Canadian supergroup were laid to rest a year later when BTO II was released. "Let It Ride”, "Welcome Home" and the monster hit "Takin’ Care of Business” all followed the formula of mixing hard-edged guitar riffs with a smooth backbeat and gained the band their second straight gold record.

Guitarist Blair Thornton came on board in time for the release of their third album, NOT FRAGILE, which contained the blockbusters "Roll On Down The Highway" and "You Ain’t Seen Nothin’ Yet".

Robin Bachman’s been keeping the beat behind the drums from Day 1 and admits to not fully realizing what it is that makes up a song sometimes. "It’s like a guy that’s helping someone build a house, you’re on the framing crew and aren’t there for the final touches," he jokes.

The hits kept coming in ‘75 with the release of FOUR WHEEL DRIVE. The title-track and "Hey You" were released as singles and helped propel the band into the stratosphere of rock. "Don’t Let The Blues Get You Down" meanwhile showed the other side of the group.

HEAD ON was next but definitely had its own sound, more laid-back and the blues influences were more prominent. They travelled to Japan for the first and only time soon after and their live album in 1977 marked the first one done by a Canadian group in the Land of the Rising Sun.

They spent the majority of the ‘80’s in and out of reunions and saw a few members come and go while the rest were trying their hands at outside projects. Randy Murray brought his guitar when he joined the group in the early 90’s and Bachman’s quick to praise his accomplishments. "Randy Murray brought his own shoes, he didn’t fill anybody’s."

To prove it they released the critically-acclaimed TRIAL BY FIRE in 1996, which not only contained new material, but also re-workings of some of their biggest hits with Randy doing vocals. Another key to the albums’s success was one of the rare covers they’ve recorded, the blues standard "House Of The Rising Sun" (made popular in the mid 60’s by Eric Burdon And The Animals). Recanting the story of how they came to record the song, Bachman said they actually played the song on a semi-regular basis years earlier. "But one night while playing the same festival as Burdon he didn’t play the song and we were told if we wanted to go home that night ... we would. People yelled out ‘Do House, Do House’ and now they think it’s ours!"

BTO has tampered and experimented with their sound over the years, but have always gone back to what brought them to the dance. "We’re a rock and roll band. Make no mistake about it,” Bachman said, but adds jokingly, "I think we’ve got a little more of a funkier feel than other white guys. I mean, we only play four chords."

The band’s headlining the Border Bash on Friday night, July 16 and if there’s one thing you can be sure of, it’s they give 110 per cent and put every effort into their live shows and you’ll walk out a more musically-enriched person for it. "We love to play and we love playing with each other."

Classic hits like "Hey You", "Roll Down The Highway", "Gimme Your Money Please", "Takin’ Care of Business", "You Ain’t Seen Nothin’ Yet" and dozens of others have become synonymous with the phrase "classic rock", even before radio stations adopted the format. Their music has defined an entire generation and lives on through two million record sales over the years and countless sold out shows around the world.

"The lineup we have now’s been going since ‘91," Bachman says. "The only agenda that this band has ever had is to go out and play our music the best we can."